Aqua Moto Racing Utopia (PC) Preview

Aqua Moto Racing Utopia gets off to a rather strange start, which isn't exactly a great sign for a rather straightforward seeming title. After initially creating a profile, the option is either given for starting off with a tutorial, or jumping straight into the championship mode. The tutorial does explain the basic foundations of the game, but not without some problems of its own.

Between multiple attempts of going through the tutorial, it seemed to switch between the first- and third-person perspectives the game offers while controlling the jet skis. It's hard to actually realise the game offers different perspectives until the camera button is stumbled upon, but it made for a confusing start that was easily preventable.

Inconsistency accurately describes a lot of the issues that hold down what is otherwise a perfectly functional title. The in-game physics engine is far from reliable, sometimes sending riders off at strange angles, face down into the water below, while other times sending them off as gracefully as a swan. Even when replicating situations exactly the same way, it doesn't feel like the mechanics perform consistently, and that's a glaring issue.

Races themselves are plagued by odd issues with the game's engine, with racers being pushed and shoved around by tiny bits of the course. It's not uncommon to be sent completely in the opposite direction for a slight collision with the competing racers, and a lot of the interactions with the map tend to go the same way. It's frustrating at best.

Even with some rather glaring issues, there's almost a decent racing game lurking beneath the surface. There's a pretty robust selection of tracks, jet skis, and championships, and the character creation is surprisingly detailed. It's a shame the game itself feels so buggy and unreliable, and it makes coming in for Early Access feel tough to swallow.